Missed all but the final seconds of Giselle Numba One, which
seemed to be some sort of dancey hip-hop thing. They played rap in
between sets which was a nice touch and a sure indication of what the
night was like. Ghetto, yo. Friendship Cove, if you are unacquainted,
is a wonderful little diamond of a venue in the middle of
Montreal's Griffintown industrial
area, run by a couple of guys out of their garage/loft thing.
They don't like you standing outside because the neighbours complain
about the noise, and there was some controversy awhile ago about them
not having a liquor license.

This night took us places we probably could never dream of, which
was a lot of fun for the relatively small (but cozy) group of
attendees.When Miracle Fortress -
one guy, a guitar, and the standard-issue electronic knobs and keys -
took the stage, the crowd was still rather sparse, but those present
were willing to enjoy. His set was predictably experimental, but
tunefully so. It started off strong with some vocal manipulation and
guitar, and got progressively noisier. The middle part seemed somewhat
self-indulgent, but for a short set it did just fine.

Dishwasher
was a bit more hectic. This act, like its precursor, was also the work
of just one guy, this time on drums and vocals (the rest was
prerecorded, including a full-on narrative supposedly dictated by a
stuffed animal with its own chair and mic.) He was quite the
performer, rarely addressing the audience or even looking its way,
until the last song where he got off his chair, spazzed around for
awhile and came into the crowd to start shit up. Good stuff.

Socalled drew the biggest crowd and the most attention -
he's a rapping, accordian-playing hip-hop artist with a Klezmer touch,
frequently vocalizing in Yiddish and preaching the Jewish way of life.
I'm Jewish, and I like it. Lots of laughs, lots of stage presence, and
even some good old sing-alongs. Socalled (and his array of
guest vocalists) were undoubtedly the highlight of the evening, so
much so that he moved many people to leave before Kali took the
stage. A shame, perhaps, but this last act was hardly able to top his
predecessor. Instead, he played a little acoustic
set that was decent but not particularly engaging
- a nice voice but not much else. All in all, it was a fun show
for Friendship Cove but not the best. Impressive
DIY stuff, and a nice feel
throughout - but Socalled was definitely the main occasion.